Take the memory, leave the shell! Watch what happens when we return seashells to the beach & marine hermit crabs!
Seashells are so important to beaches for a whole host of reasons.
🐚Over-shelling can affect hermit crabs because it reduces the availability of suitable shells for them to inhabit. Hermit crabs rely on empty shells of other creatures for protection and shelter. When there are too few shells available, hermit crabs may be forced to inhabit inadequate shells & pollution as homes, which can hinder their growth and make them more vulnerable to predators and environmental stressors. This can ultimately impact their survival and reproductive success.
🐚Shells provide homes or attachment surfaces for algae, sea grass, sponges, coral and a host of other microorganisms.
🐚Animals such as decorator crabs and octopus use shells as camouflage and many fish use shells as hiding places to avoid predators.
🐚Shells help to stabilize beaches and anchor seagrass.
🐚Shells are used by shorebirds to build nests.
🐚When shells break down, they provide nutrients for the organisms living in the sand or for those that build their own shells. (Shells are a major source of calcium.) I’m a firm believer in when we know better, we do better. I once shelled, and then when I learned all of this, I returned all shells that were not sprayed with a clear varnish to the beach & watched the marine hermit crabs go wild changing shells that were so needed!
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